CONSIDER SEARS THIS SEASON
The holidays are upon us and as you prepare your shopping list you might want to think about doing some of that at Sears. I received an email from a friend and then I checked it out on Snoops and it turned out to be TRUE!
Subject: Sears - Christmas shopping has already started
I know I needed this reminder since Sears isn’t always my first choice. Amazing when you think of how long the war has lasted and they haven’t withdrawn from their commitment. Could we each buy at least one thing at Sears this year?
How does Sears treat its employees who are called up for military duty? By law, they are required to hold their jobs open and available, but nothing more. Usually, people take a big pay cut and lose benefits as a result of being called up.
Sears is voluntarily paying the difference in salaries and maintaining all benefits, including medical insurance and bonus programs, for all called up reservist employees for up to two years.
I submit that Sears is an exemplary corporate citizen and should be recognized for its contribution. I suggest we all shop at Sears, and be sure to find a manager to tell them why we are there so the company gets the positive reinforcement it well deserves.
Pass it on.
Decided to check this before I sent it forward. So I sent the following e-mail to the Sears Customer Service Department:
I received this e-mail and I would like to know if it is true. If it is, the Internet may have just become one very good source of advertisement for your company. I know I would go out of my way to buy products from Sears instead of another store for a like item, even if it’s cheaper at that store.
This is their answer to my e-mail:
Dear Customer:
Thank you for contacting Sears.The information is factual. We appreciate your positive feedback.
Sears regards service to our country as one of greatest sacrifices our young men and women can make. We are happy to do our part to lessen the burden they bear at this time.
Bill Thorn
Sears Customer Care
webcenter@sears.com
1-800-349-4358
Please pass this on to all your friends. Sears needs to be recognized for this outstanding contribution and we need to show them as Americans, we do appreciate what they are doing for our military!!!
It’s Verified by going to http://www.snopes.com/
STUDY FINDS HIGHER COSTS FOR CAREGIVERS OF ELDERLY
Baby boomers beware! Our parents are living longer and it follows that at some point they are going to need our help. We may become their caregivers and we need to be prepared to pay, and pay and pay.
“The out-of-pocket cost of caring for an aging parent or spouse averages about $5,500 a year, according to the nation’s first in-depth study of such expenses, a sum that is more than double previous estimates and more than the average American household spends annually on health care and entertainment combined.”
“Family members responsible for ailing loved ones provide not only “hands on” care but often reach into their own pockets to pay for many other expenses of care recipients, including groceries, household goods, drugs, medical co-payments and transportation. That nudges the average cost of providing long-distance care to $8,728 a year.”
[read whole story]
A DEEPLY GREEN CITY CONFRONTS ITS ENERGY NEEDS AND NUCLEAR WORRIES
The politically correct thing to do is to think green. “Experts” say that whatever we do in our own backyard has an impact globally. Well, if we do ‘green’ things that should be good for everyone right? Not necessarily.
“This city, (Fort Collins, Colorado) takes pride in being green, from its official motto, “Where renewal is a way of life,” to its Climate Wise energy program, which helps local businesses reduce the carbon emissions that scientists say can contribute to global warming.”
“But now two proposed energy projects are exposing the hard place that communities like this across the country are likely to confront in years to come as the tangled nuances of thinking globally come back to bite.”
[read whole story]
CRITICS ASSAIL WEAK DOLLAR AT OPEC EVENT
Which came first, the chicken or the egg? That age old question is used to “explain” seemingly unanswerable questions in our everyday lives. Now it seems appropriate to apply it to the question of why gas prices are so high.
“A rare meeting of the heads of state of the OPEC countries ended here today on a political note, with two leaders — President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran — blaming the weakness of the United States dollar for high oil prices.”
““The dollar is in free fall, everyone should be worried about it,” Mr. Chávez told reporters here. “The fall of the dollar is not the fall of the dollar — it’s the fall of the American empire.””
“During a news conference after the meeting, Mr. Ahmadinejad added: “The U.S. dollar has no economic value.””
[read whole story]
THE MELTDOWN OF AMHERST SUPERVISOR SATISH MOHAN
The Amherst Town Board meeting of November 5th exposed to the public the huge chasm in the experience and so called wisdom of Supervisor Satish Mohan. Previously the Town Board had voted on, and approved, the proposed 2008 budget by a 4 to 3 vote even thought they did not know all the details of the budget. Those in favor of the final budget were Council members O’Loughlin, Kindel, McGuire and Supervisor Mohan.
The 2008 budget is permeated with a maze of confusing and erroneous allotments which will cause serious problems in many areas of the budget such as: paying the incorrect amount of money to the Town Highway employees; the actual tax levy the people of Amherst will be paying; and other financial errors.
The CEO of Amherst is the Supervisor. It is his, and only his, responsibility to know if the approved 2008 budget addresses the true needs of the Town and if it is constructed correctly.
Members of the public asked questions concerning the 2008 budget, as did certain Town Board members. Many individuals stated there were major errors in the budget. The Supervisor immediately blamed his employees for these errors. He stated they gave him incorrect numbers or simply would not give him numbers at all. Mohan accused the School Superintendents of Amherst, Williamsville and Sweet Home of being in collusion with the Town Assessor to mess up the Town Assessments.
What the audience witnessed happening in our Town Hall that evening, and all the viewers who watched later on TV, was the meltdown of Supervisor Mohan. He blamed many, many others for his mistakes. Never once did he accept any of the blame.
BETTING AN ESTATE ON INHALED INSULIN
For those individuals suffering with diabetes, the hope of dealing with it without injections of insulin is enormous. An inhaled insulin delivery system would be an important improvement.
“Pfizer, the world’s biggest drug company, flopped miserably with a seemingly can’t-miss idea. Pfizer’s failure was a form of insulin that people with diabetes could inhale rather than inject. But last month, after selling only $12 million worth of inhaled insulin in the first nine months of the year, Pfizer said it would take a $2.8 billion charge and abandon the product.”
“Alfred E. Mann is betting nearly $1 billion of his own money that he can succeed where Pfizer failed.”
[read whole story]
WASHINGTON SCRUTINIZES NURSING HOMES
Concerns that quality at nursing homes was declining as large chains were acquired by private investment groups prompted Congressional hearings into the matter.
“Members of the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee and the Senate Special Committee on Aging proposed measures to require nursing homes to disclose ownership and to require regulators to release information about poorly managed homes.”
“Kerry N. Weems, the acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which regulates nursing homes, offered several initiatives to improve oversight. His suggestions included releasing the so-called special focus facility list, which identifies homes that regulators consider among the nation’s worst. That list, which will be released Dec. 1, has not been public.”
[read whole story]
COMMERCIAL AIRLINES GIVEN PRIORITY IN MILITARY’S SPACE
President Bush announced that airlines would be able to make fuller use of military airspace to relieve congestion and cut delays. An agreement has been made between the Federal Aviation Administration and the Defense Department which will allow commercial airlines to plan in advance to route flights through areas off the Atlantic coast where the Air National Guard and the Air Force conduct exercises.
“The experiment will start Wednesday and run through the Sunday after Thanksgiving.”
“If the experiment works in that period, it could be used again at the end of the year, said Mary E. Peters, the secretary of transportation. Ms. Peters compared the routes to highway shoulders that are opened for traffic during rush hour.”
[read whole story]
CONGRESSMAN HIGGINS ANNOUNCES $78,843 FOR MARILLA FIRE COMPANY
Today, Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-27) announced that the Marilla Fire Company has been awarded $78,843 in federal Homeland Security funding in the fifteenth round of Assistance to Firefighters Grants Program (AFGP) awards for fiscal year 2007.
“Each and every day our firefighters fulfill a selfless mission and put their lives on the line to save the lives of their neighbors,” said Congressman Higgins. “This funding provides our local first responders in Marilla with additional resources to protect themselves and the communities they serve.”
Founded in 1923, the Marilla Volunteer Fire Company provides fire protection, search and rescue, and emergency medical services in Marilla, New York. The fire company has been awarded this grant under the AFGP Operations and Safety Program which makes funds available for training, equipment, personal protective equipment, wellness and fitness, and health and safety modifications to stations and facilities.
Over the last several years Congressman Higgins has hosted fire grant workshops where participants are invited to learn first hand from a DHS Fire Grant Specialist how to put together a qualifying application. All applications are then submitted to DHS and go through a non-partisan, merit based review ranked by factors established by a panel of fire service professionals. Over the last two years, fire companies in Congressman Higgins’ district have received over $5 million dollars.
The 2007program, which Congress appropriated, and President Bush signed into law, includes $490 million in direct assistance to firefighters to improve the effectiveness of firefighting operations, firefighter health and safety programs, and to establish or expand fire prevention programs throughout the United States. The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of State and Local Government Coordination and Preparedness (SLGCP) administers the program, in cooperation with the U.S. Fire Administration.
For more information about the grant program please contact Congressman Higgins’ office at 852-3501.
GOVERNOR SPITZER DROPS HIS PLAN FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TO OBTAIN DRIVERS LICENSES
Gov. Spitzer’s plan to issue driver licenses to illegal immigrants which stirred up a major controversy has been killed by its own creator. Gov. Spitzer’s plan had its merits but the general public was against it.
When a politician puts forth a controversial matter which the public is against their approval rating suffers. It takes guts to try something the public is against. Gov. Spitzer has earned my respect for first trying and also listening to the public outcry. He isn’t a wimp like many other politicians.
